Thursday, April 2, 2015

Dear Fam,

I am wildly encouraged. Two weeks ago, I preached in Gainesville at Christ
Community Church. Sprinkled among the worshipers were students that grew up at
SRPC/SRCS: Lucas Ebert, Milena Kacer, Sophia Leon, Montana Wallace, Adam Gage
and Rachel Dumas Bacheldor—who was out of town, worships there, too! Last
weekend, Diane and I went to Tallahassee to celebrate my grandson’s 3rd
birthday and attended church with my son, Tony, and his family. At church were
Carolyn Allen, Emily Pullen, Nate Whitchurch, Sarah Busk and, though
out-of-town, Danielle Albury Roth and Chris Roth attend there, too! Seeing all
these kids who grew up here following Jesus and loving His church was deeply
fulfilling. Our school vision states well what we want the product of our
ministry to be. “The vision of SRCS is to produce graduates who are passionate
about God and His church and who are equipped to thrive in higher education,
create healthy families, and bring the joy and peace of the gospel to a broken
world.”

·
Would you pray for another child who grew up at SRPC—my daughter Kristen.
Kristen and Eric Stites have their first worship service in the Parramore
Avenue neighborhood on Easter morning. Pray that people will come and be
shocked by the grace of God! Here’s
their website.

·
What enables us to raise our kids in Jesus and send them out to the most broken
places of the world with the good news of God’s healing power—a congregation
that has made getting the faith to our children our priority. We asked you last
month to buy chicken dinners to help send our high school students on a mission
trip this summer to St. Louis. You guys bought over 560 pounds of chicken!!

·
Pastor’s Class is where people in our church often “get it.” The next class
starts April 15 at 6:30 pm in the Florida Room. We meet for 5 consecutive
Wednesdays for an hour and a half each night. Childcare is available. Sign up here, or just walk in!

·
Need a new toy? Somebody donated a really nice golf cart to SRPC and we are
selling it! See it here.

· Do
you love literature? I just finished an outstanding book entitled, “All the
Light We Cannot See,” by Anthony Doerr. It was named one of the top ten books
of the year by the NYT Book Review. It’s a treat!

·
Hats off to Chad Robison, the choir, Adam Hill’s tech staff, the ticket
sellers/takers/ushers, Sue Winship, the parking crew, et al. for pulling off
the magnificent American Folk and Hymn Festival. It was a feast—Aaron Copeland,
Deep River, Finlandia, Oh When the Saints…the hits just didn’t stop. It was a
packed house and a veritable musical feast. So proud of our team for bringing
this gift to our culturally starved community!

·

Pray with me for the power of the risen Christ to open the hearts and minds of
those who come to Easter worship. Pray for the preacher, too—he gets scared on
big occasions! I love you, SRPC!

Ray

﻿

March 5, 2015

Dear Fam,

As we sprint into the month of March and a return to Daylight Savings Time
(hallelujah) we find SRPC to be a busy and happening place! Last week, we
finished Global Outreach month with a visit from Kate and NoNo Beale of Isaiah 55 Deaf Ministry, we had the SRCS
Senior Class on a mission trip to build houses for Habitat in Tuscaloosa, we
had over 30 middle-school students and adults on a retreat, and we had 50
adults and children join our family as new members. So what’s next on the
calendar?

- March 21, fourteen from SRPC will travel to Pasadena, CA to help an
old friend, Chuck Ryor, remodel their new church building at Prism Church of Pasadena.- March 27, brings us the Americana Folk and Hymn Festival – you
won’t want to miss it. This concert will celebrate great hymns and folk songs
from our American heritage such as Amazing Grace, Shenandoah, Morning Has
Broken, and When the Saints Go Marching In, just to name a
few. We will also feature some of America's greatest composers including
leonard Bernstein's West Side Story and Aaron Copland's Tender Land
Suite. Tickets are available online, at the church office
or at the Guest Services desk during weekend worship.- April 2, Maundy Thursday service at 6:30pm in the Sanctuary- April 4, at 11:00am, the Children's Ministry will host an Easter Egg
Hunt for our toddlers through 5th graders. Make sure to arrive on time because
the eggs go fast! There will be a picnic and games afterwards for your kids to
enjoy, including a bounce house!- April 4/5, Easter Worship - Saturday at 6:00pm, Sunday at 9:00am and
10:50am. Now is a great time to start thinking about who you would like to
invite.- June 1, Camp Seven Rivers begins – it's one of the best things we
do at SRPC. The theme this year is Blast from the Past. Each
week, campers will get to experience all the coolest fads from each decade
beginning with the Roaring 20's on June 1 and finishing out the summer with the
Rockin' 80's on July 17. It's sure to be a blast!

· Pray for one another! Jenna Campbell continues to face surgeries in her
battle with cancer. Aimee Kelso goes next week for important treatment and
evaluation of her cancer, Ken Wackes and Dale McCollough continue to deal with
neuro-muscular degenerative diseases and Matt and Rachel Witherow approach the
birth of their little girl (in late April) knowing she will only live a few
minutes. We need each other, nobody can make it alone – let’s continue to bear
one another’s burdens.

· JoAnn Gardner’s eighth-grade English class at Seven Rivers Christian School
recently read “A Long Walk to Water.” The story chronicles a young girl walking
each day for eight hours to bring water back to her home. The eighth-grade
class, inspired by this story, has established the Warrior Water Fund in
partnership with Water for South Sudan to raise money to dig wells and bring
clean water to Africa. Their goal is to raise $25,000 by May 2016 and have already
exceeded their first goal of $1000 by raising $1500 thus far! Rubber
wristbands are for sale at the school office for $2 each to support the cause.
Donations are also welcome. JoAnn
Gardner can give you more information.

· This week we give thanks for Jeff Brake. Jeff has been leading
Celebrate Recovery for the last five years. Jeff has tirelessly given his
talents, energy and service to this ministry. Jeff has been a bulldog in
his determination to fight for those in our church and community who struggle
with hurts, habits and hang ups. Thank you Jeff! Please welcome and pray
for Paul Manuel who will be taking the helm of CR in April.

· This Friday morning at 10:45 in the Sanctuary, many of us at SRPC will gather
to honor God for the glorious life of Betty Santana. Immediately following the
service, those who wish can proceed to her burial at the Florida National
Cemetery in Bushnell. Betty died Sunday in her 89th year of life and
after 72 years of marriage to her beloved Ted. When her casket arrives at
campus on Friday morning at 8:45 – many of our students will line the sidewalk
as it processes by. This is in recognition that in many ways Betty is the
mother of SRPC. Nobody loved SRPC more than Betty and nobody was more loved by
the SRPC family than Betty. Proverbs 31 says of the virtuous woman, “. . .her
children rise up and call her blessed.” Friday morning many of us will gather
to do just that!

· This weekend in worship, I’ll be preaching on Matthew 18:1-14. Our
worship will include the feast of the Lord’s Supper! Be sure to reset
your clocks before Sunday morning!

Ray

February 12, 2015

Dear Fam,

I’m thanking God today for our remarkable children’s ministry team and the fact
that it's growing only stronger. This week, we added Kaylee Nelson to our staff
to assist Teri Hill and to direct Camp Seven Rivers! Adam Jones recently
emailed me this note regarding our children’s program. “I met with a young
couple yesterday that has been coming to our church for about two years.
They have come because of children's ministry. They have been blown away
by the workers telling them things their children have done in children's
ministry… “Your son prayed today…. He told God thank for you for the trees, the
sky, the bugs, my sister…” They have been amazed that you guys do more
than ‘childcare’ and show them a movie. The mom could not believe that
she came for a leadership meeting and her child did a craft about Noah… She was
so impressed that her kids are ‘getting taught’ and getting loved in children's
ministry… She simply told me that, in her church experience, this is not the
norm.”

· Lots of good stuff about to happen at SRPC:

Ash Wednesday service is on February 18 at 6:30. What’s Ash
Wednesday? Ash Wednesday begins the season of the Church Year known as
Lent, which begins forty days prior to Easter and is characterized by a focus
on penitence, fasting, prayer and works of charity. This first day of
Lent reminds Christians of the works of Jesus in Matthew 16:24 – “If any of you
wants to be my follower, you must put aside your selfish ambition, shoulder
your cross, and follow me.” The way to Easter is the way of the cross. As
the first step in this Lenten journey the Ash Wednesday service invites us to
acknowledge our mortality, our sinfulness and our dependence upon the grace of
God. A unique feature of this service is the marking of the forehead with
ashes in the sign of the cross. Since the 10th century this practice has
been used to symbolize the frailty of our human existence and our deep need for
the saving work of Jesus.

Digging Deeper is a required class for anyone in a leadership role at
Seven Rivers, but everyone is welcome to take this class. In this eight-week
class, taught by Adam Jones, you will study the biblical truths held by our
church and denomination (Presbyterian Church in America). Digging Deeper is
offered once a year. Our next eight-week Digging Deeper class begins Wednesday,
February 25, 2015 at 6:30 pm in the Choir Room. Register at church this weekend
or here.

SRCS Open House: Come see why families choose Seven Rivers Christian
School at one of the upcoming Open House events: Feb 17 at 6:30 pm, Feb 21 at
at 11:00 a.m. If you miss it this month, there will be another one on May 5!

· Thanks for praying for Adam Jones and me as we spoke to pastors last week in
Hendersonville, NC. Adam was phenomenal—I was so glad the folks there got to
hear the wisdom those of us at SRPC get all the time from him! Let me also add
that if you’re ever in the area, go to the Carl Sandburg house and to the Flat Rock Village Bakery—their
wood-fired pizza and apple turnover are the best things I’ve put in my mouth in
the last 70 years! Here's a disturbing picture from the conference...in my
defense, it was very cold there!

· Two events of note:
--Filter Youth Development Ministry Open House is February 21 from noon to 2pm
at Cornerstone Baptist Church in Inverness. This is a ministry to families in
our county who need mentorship and new skills to help overcome hardships that
come arise from broken relationships and troubling behavior. You could win a
new Honda Ruckus if you go!
--A memorial service for Phil Glavey will be held this Saturday at Nature Coast
Church at 11:00 a.m. Phil was a delightful man and became an integral part of
SRPC in our earliest days. His wife, Sandy was our first Children’s Ministry
Director. I loved the Glaveys!

· Here are some recommendations: Movies: Be
sure to see American Sniper, Selma and Taking Chance.
Taking Chance was an HBO film, may have never been in the theaters, and thank
goodness it’s short because I choked back tears the whole time. You will love
this. Don’t see Unbroken—read the book, it’s an amazing story. I’d also
recommend John Grisham’s, Gray Mountain and Hampton Sides book on artic
exploration called, “In the Kingdom of Ice.” Here’s another movie not to
see Fifty
Shades of Grey. Here’s a video
that will prompt you to thank God for school teachers!

· The Global Outreach month continues this weekend with
visits from RUF campus pastors from UF (Tim Carper) and UCF (Lee Wright). By
the way, February 21-22, Steve Saint will be preaching if God enables it—pray
for him. This weekend, I’ll be preaching on Matthew 16:21-28! Can’t wait to be
with you in worship.

Sincerely,

Ray

January 8, 2015

Dear Family,

Welcome to 2015! This weekend we kickoff a new year of experiencing God’s
faithfulness together as a church family. This year will include some totally
unscripted, tear-­­inducing, joy-filled moments and some moments of deep
sobriety and pain over the brokenness of our lives and our world. This year
will include lots of praying and patiently (or impatiently) waiting on God to
act in ways that will stretch our faith, and also the experience of God busting
in and radically intervening in the most sudden, glorious, and unanticipated fashion.
2015 is going to be a wild ride—and we get to do it together!

· This weekend we kickoff the new year with three weekend services (Saturday
night at 6:00, and Sunday morning at 9:00 & 10:50). There will be “snacky
stuff” after the Saturday service and donuts between the two Sunday services.
There will also be the opportunity to hook up with a small group if you’re not
yet in one!

· Four great learning opportunities will launch next week:
--Pastor’s Class--is for those looking for more information about Seven Rivers
Church, seeking to know Christ, or interested in church membership. See more here—we begin this
Wednesday night at 6:30 and childcare is available.
--End Times Class--Brandon
Lauranzon will teach this five-week class beginning this Wednesday at 6.30 pm
in the sanctuary.
--Unhitching From The Crazy Train--Our women’s retreat is next weekend. See here for more details.
--Jr. Pastor’s Class--A six-week class designed to press the foundation of the
gospel into hearts of middle schoolers. Students who complete the requirements
are eligible for church membership. Class is every Sunday morning 9:00-10:30
starting January 18. Inquire with the student ministry staff or email Jillian Folkerts to register.

· SRPC in the Villages? Welcome to Golf Cart Presbyterian Church! The SRPC
session has approved launching a Bible study in The Villages to gauge the
interest in the beginning of a new church. The Bible study begins this Sunday
night at the Sonrise Café
at 6:30 p.m. (3469 Wedgewood Lane, The Villages 32162). Do you
have friends in The Villages you could encourage to attend? Will you pray now
and regularly for this good work?

· Fun, fun, fun to see what God calls kids to do who grew up at SRPC/SRCS. Just
before Christmas break, Wes Tubman who graduated in 2003 matriculated at the
Air Force Academy and is now a United States Air Force pilot – buzzed the
campus in his F16! Carolyn Allen, who graduated in 2009 “studied” at FSU, just
moved to Tallahassee to serve on the governor’s staff as Governor Rick Scott’s
photographer!

· Here’s two good articles. The first answers questions you may have been
asking – why is SRCS booming, why are parents zealous to have their children
educated here and teachers increasingly desirous of laboring here. The article
is entitled, What
Makes An Excellent Education, was written by Dana James and just appeared
in the January 2015 edition of Innovation Citrus. Article number two is
entitled, Science Increasingly Makes the Case for God, was written by Eric
Metaxas and appeared in The Wall Street Journal on Christmas Morning. Read
it here.

· This weekend in worship we’ll continue our sermon series on Love Thy Neighbor
at all three weekend services. Don’t miss the fun!

Sincerely,

Ray

December 18, 2014

Dear Fam,

I hope you’ve enjoyed Advent worship as much as I have. The music in the narthex
before services, the preschoolers dropping some serious cute on us two weekends
ago, the choir and little girls singing last week and the sweet sounds of Tom
Leonard's saxaphone echoing off the walls as we gather for worship! As good as
it’s been, the best is yet to come . . . Christmas at Seven Rivers this
Saturday night (thus no Saturday evening worship) and Christmas Eve worship at
3:00p.m., 5:00p.m., and 7:00p.m.

· Thank you, thank you, thank you for your generous MORE giving. The athletic
complex is progressing toward an August 2015 debut! Your dollars are funding a
mission to capture children’s hearts and minds for Jesus. Our school is
projecting growth as high as 500 children next year. Here’s a peek at the
progress on the athletic fields!

· In last weekend’s sermon (The Branch), I made mention of a video of married
couples finding their marriages strengthened devoting themselves to being
agents of restoration in our world. It’s worth watching.

· Here’s the
latest letter from our daughter and son-in-law’s mission to plant a church in
the Parramore Avenue neighborhood of Orlando.

· If you’re a husband and still haven’t found the perfect gift for your bride,
then you better get going but be very careful!!

· Going to be with family for Christmas? Here’s comfort – a sweet prayer
for those of us saddened by loved ones with memory loss. Here’s encouragement –
God loves to redeem the most unlikely candidates. Read this
testimony of a Frenchman who said, “I drove to an
evangelical congregation in Paris, visiting it as I would a zoo: to see
exotic animals that I had read about but had never seen in real life.”

· This Sunday morning I’m preaching on Isaiah 35:1-10. On January 3/4 – we’ll
start a new year together with a sermon series entitled, Love Thy Neighbor.
When I count my blessings this Christmas - naturally my wife and family are the
nearest and dearest to my heart. I am stunned, too at God’s kindness to
admit me into His family and to allow me to be a part of the sweet, screwed-up,
mess of a family that he’s knit together at Seven Rivers. We belong to Him and
we belong to each other . . . can you believe it? Merry Christmas dear
ones!

Love,

Ray

December 5, 2014

Dear Family,

Tis the season at SRPC!

¯The sanctuary is
beautifully decorated and you’ll be greeted with Christmas music in the narthex
before each service.

¯ Advent preaching begins this weekend with a
series entitled, “Joy to the World.” Message number one is from Isaiah 9:1-7.

¯ Camp Christmas is an outreach program to our
preschool families, many of whom do not attend SRPC. After a day of camp on
this Saturday (Dec. 6) they’ll attend church and the preschoolers will sing
during Sunday worship and the families and kids will be treated to lunch!

¯ The MOPS annual Christmas Party is this
Tuesday, December 9 at 7:00 pm in the Florida Room. Childcare is provided by
reservation only. Send RSVP for childcare to Jillian Folkerts.

¯ Christmas at Seven Rivers is Saturday,
December 20 at 7:00 pm. (Worship on Sunday only that weekend.) This very
special holiday evening will include some of the most beloved Christmas
melodies and compositions by classical masters Samuel Barber, Sergei Prokofiev,
and Charles Gounod. Performing will be the Seven Rivers Chorale and the
Florida Philharmonic Orchestra with a special appearance by Amy Owens a bright,
vibrant soprano. She is an Apprentice at Santa Fe Opera and recently finished a
two-year residency with Utah Opera. This concert sold out early last year, so
don’t delay in purchasing your tickets. Tickets can be purchased here or at
the Guest Service Desk this weekend.

¯ Christmas Eve worship will be bright and
beautiful at 3:00, 5:00 and 7:00 pm on December 24!

· As a staff, we were reflecting this week on how surprisingly powerful Prayer
Week was. Here’s
one person’s experience during this sweet week.

· Want to do something more meaningful with Christmas money than buy more
stuff? Consider an experience that may alter the trajectory of your life or
family—invest in a mission trip. Here’s the roster
of opportunities in 2015.

· Here’s a couple great quotes. The first is
from Tim Keller’s book, Center Church on the signs of renewal. The second
is from David Brooks recent New York Times column entitled, "The Ambition
Explosion."

· If you want to hear good preaching – can I recommend a humble, not widely
known preacher who labors in an obscure, out-of-the-way burg along the Florida
gulf coast. His name is Adam Jones and he is a sermon master craftsman. Last
weekend’s sermon on family and parenting entitled “The House Rules” was
poignant and powerful. If you missed it—listen to it, if you were there then
listen again! I almost came out of my seat when Adam said, “Prioritizing
children at SRPC—these are the house rules!”

“Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his
steadfast love endures forever!” Psalm 107:1
I’m thankful for prayer week and prayer “weak”
I’m thankful for the fatherly love of God
I’m thankful for a responsible congregation – we ask them to pray and they do
in greater numbers than we ever anticipated
Sue Winship and her coffee bar ministry to many on weekends
Supportive spouses of our hardworking staff members
Pumpkin pancakes
Free shipping!
Tampa, I love Tampa – the Rays/Bucs/Lightening/airport, Cuban food, beaches,
Bayshore Blvd, Hyde Park, Westtown Church, The Oxford Exchange
My grandsons (Reid, Barrett, Sam, Knox, Beau and Mason - due on 11/30) and for
your grandchildren
Southwest Airlines
The dream of athletic fields at SRCS coming to reality
Cheesecake
Tim Keller
A church that doesn’t let elections (local or national) divide us
Winston Churchill
That Jesus knows my name
Our Deacons (Jamey Gage, Jeff Jekabsons, Mark Stone, Tom Loughridge, Bob Rupp,
John Weed, Warren Conner, Brian Czajkowski, Joseph Lounders, Ron LaTorraca,
Isaac Torres, David Wallace, John Welter)
Jeff Brake and his leadership in Celebrate Recovery
A massacre avoided at FSU
Our gorgeous new preschool building and playground
Foster parents at SRPC
Dale McCollough and his wife serving him valiantly
Amazon
My daughter-in-law (Ashley) and my sons-in-law (Bibb & Eric)
The music at SRPC
Charles Krauthammer
Camp Seven Rivers
Our Divorce Recovery ministry
Christmas Eve Worship
Jenna Campbell’s slow, steady recovery
Public school educators sacrificially ministering to broken children and
families in our community
Frances Spalti
College Football
Homemade granola
Thanksgiving dinner with family
Medgar Evers
Plunging gas prices
The way Karen Ott cared for her husband as he battled cancer
Bill Simmons
Johnathan & Maggie Iverson and their five girls building Christ's church in
Asia
Jacqui Frazee looking out for widows for over 20 years at SRPC
Greek Gods Yogurt
The robust health of SRCS
Getting to watch people at SRPC stream forward for communion
The freedom the gospel produces to be honest about our brokenness and
weaknesses
Sautéed spinach
The Holy Spirit who constantly reminds me that I’m God’s beloved child
I get to pastor and learn from such a remarkable church family
Jack Reacher
The Citrus County Chronicle
Florida sunsets
I don’t live in Buffalo, NY
SRPC members who’ve given generously to scholarship children at SRCS
Ken Burns
My Dad & Mom – the most selflessly generous people I’ve ever met
I-Tec
The Jingle Bell 5K in Inverness
Navy Seals and their valiant comrades who put themselves between us and evil
The Bible and all who died so we could have it
New Christians
Will Farrell
The athletic genes of the Gage Family
The Puritan prayers of the Valley of Vision
I get to baptize the little ones who to Him belong
My wife. 35 years married and she is still the one!
Hope your heart is filled with wonder over how good God is!

Love,

Ray

November 14, 2014

Dear Fam,

Praise the Lord.
Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty heavens.
Praise him for his acts of power;
praise him for his surpassing greatness.
Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,
praise him with the harp and lyre,
praise him with timbrel and dancing,
praise him with the strings and pipe,
praise him with the clash of cymbals,
praise him with resounding cymbals.
Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord. --Psalm 150

· "Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!” Nov. 17-23 SRPC
intends to practice doing just this during Prayer Week. Before the hectic rush
of the holiday season—we are calling our church and small groups to stop, be
still, be quiet, listen, and pray. Our sanctuary will be open Monday-Friday
from 8:00 – 9:30 am, and again in the evening from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It will be
quiet, there will be music playing softly, you can sit and read your Bible,
there will be guides and stations to lead you in how to pray, as well as elders
and deacons if you’d like someone to pray for you. This would be a great week
to pray with your children, pray with your spouse, or come as a small group to pray
at SRPC. Pray at the office, pray with your team, pray on the way to work, pray
before bed. The Bible says to pray at all times but we are weak at
praying…let’s practice next week. Let’s meet our God in prayer.

· Here’s something to pray about. We want to start a church in The Villages.
The first exploratory meeting will be a dinner this Sunday night at 6:00 pm at
the SonRise Café (3469 Wedgewood
Lane, The Villages FL 32161). We have been advertising in The Villages inviting
people to come and be a part of a new church plant. Our plan is for Adam and
Brandon to lead a Bible study there on Sunday nights beginning in January in an
attempt to build the group and move toward founding a new church.

· This Sunday night at 6:00 pm, Nature Coast
Community Church (a church plant of SRPC) is dedicating their first
building in Homosassa (5113 S Suncoast Blvd, Homosassa FL 34446). All are
invited to come!

· Would you pray for Joyce Trygar—yesterday she had surgery for a kidney
transplant. Pray that her body will accept the new organ.

· Baptisms were really sweet this weekend at SRPC. Here’s an article
to help you grasp the blessing of baptism.

· I have really, really good news. The Rusty Duck is open again for lunch
(Monday-Friday)! The Duck is a Citrus County treasure!

· As Thanksgiving approaches, I give you reason to consider how good you
actually have it. A preacher in Mt. Dora set the record (according to
Guinness—the book, not the beer) for the longest speech/sermon ever last
weekend—he preached for 53 hours and 18 minutes without stopping. Clearly at
SRPC our pastors are models of brevity!

· Our Christmas Concert is Saturday, December 20 at 7:00 pm (there will be no
Saturday evening service that weekend) The Seven Rivers Chorale and Central
Florida Philharmonic Orchestra will present Christmas At
Seven Rivers. This very special holiday evening will include some of the
most beloved Christmas melodies as well as some undiscovered compositions. Tickets ($20
for adults, $5 for children 12 and under) will be available to purchase at
the Guest Service Desk this weekend and are available online now!

· This weekend, we’ll kick off Prayer Week with a sermon on prayer and a sweet
time around the Lord’s Table. I can’t wait to be together again!

Sincerely,

Ray

“Maintenance prayer meetings are short, mechanical, and
focused on physical needs inside the church. In contrast, the three basic
traits of frontline prayers are these: a request for grace to confess sins and
to humble ourselves; a compassion and zeal for the flourishing of the church
and the reaching of the lost; and a yearning to know God, to see his face, to
glimpse his glory.” –Tim Keller

October 30, 2014

Dear Fam,

The MORE campaign marches on. Last weekend’s video included a beautiful flyover of the
developing athletic complex. Our MORE halftime included 56 families making new
commitments joining the 517 families who originally jumped in! Our God is able
to do more than we ever dreamed or imagined.

· Trunk or Treat was a churchyard smash! Those of you who decorated trunks did
a stunningly good job. Dana James dressed as the Cat in the Hat was my personal
favorite.

· My wife is in Orlando this week helping our daughter and son-in-law, and
grandson move…In her absence—self-discipline has waned. The last two nights I
ate a whole box of Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Spice Granola while watching Ken Burns’
film on Teddy, Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt. The film on the Roosevelts is
can’t miss and the granola is…all gone!

· Here’s an excerpt of an article entitled, When Salt Blames the Rot, by Denis
Haack on just who is to blame for cultural decline.

We are rapidly reaching the point in Western consumer
societies where people confuse freedom with choice, as they are dazzled daily
by an ever-expanding array of external choices in consumer goods and lifestyle
options. But the pursuit of freedom has led to a surfeit of choices and a
scarcity of meaning and value—a point at which choice itself, rather than the
content of any choice, has become the heart of freedom. The result is that
modern people value choice rather than good choice. [Os Guiness]
John R.W. Stott addressed the issue in Authentic Christianity (1995): When men
reject what they know of God, God gives them up to their own distorted notions
and perverted passions, until society stinks in the nostrils of God and of all
good people.

Now Christians are set in secular society by God to hinder this process. God
intends us to penetrate the world. Christian salt has no business to remain
snugly in elegant little ecclesiastical salt cellars; our place is to be rubbed
into the secular community, as salt is rubbed into meat, to stop it going bad.
And when society does go bad, we Christians tend to throw up our hands in pious
horror and reproach the non-Christian world; but should we not rather reproach
ourselves? One can hardly blame unsalted meat for going bad. It cannot do
anything else.

The real question to ask is: where is the salt?

If Stott is correct, and I believe he is, then we Christians tend to assign
blame incorrectly for the social decay we see around us. The problem is not
them, but us.

Of course, even if we adopt Stott’s perspective, we must be careful how we
express it. The point is not to insist that Christians would solve the problem
if they were involved, because we can’t know that. Nor is the point to insist
that, if Christians had been involved in the first place, this social
difficulty would not have arisen, because we can’t know that either. Bothe
statements reek of arrogance.

The point, instead, is to agree that real problems exist in society that keep
people from truly flourishing, and that it is at those points of tension, the
church should be engaged—but we usually aren’t , and that is to our shame.

· Prayer Week is an opportunity
to reteach our hearts and minds that prayer really is "doing
something" about the issues that face our community, our country, and our
world. In fact, prayer might be the best thing we could ever do, because only
God has the ultimate power to change anything. Prayer Week will offer you the
chance to slow down, be quiet, and bring your petitions before the Lord. Monday
through Friday, November 17-21, the Sanctuary will be open from 8-9:30am and
6:30-8pm. The space will be transformed into a prayer chapel, and a staff
person will be on hand with info to guide you in how to pray and what to pray
for. You can also use the time to just sit, reflect on Scripture, and be still.
Free childcare will be provided on Thursday morning and Friday evening.

· This weekend in worship, we’ll
welcome new members into the SRPC family. I’ll be preaching on Ephesians
4:25-5:7. This Saturday night/Sunday morning you also need to change your clock
back one hour! Looking forward to being together this weekend!

Ray

October 23, 2014

Dear Fam,

This is an action-packed weekend at SRPC. It’s Halftime of
the MORE campaign, so we are celebrating what’s been accomplished thus far (see
last weekend’s MORE video) and setting our sights on finishing well. This week
in worship will include:
· Bagpipes in recognition of Reformation Day
· Preaching on Ephesians 4:17-24
· A MORE video featuring the second half of our campaign—the
construction of our athletic complex
· Filling out cards to make a MORE commitment, or to recommit, to
the pledges already made.
· Ice cream after Saturday worship and donuts after the Sunday
services!

Though the MORE campaign only allocated $800,000 toward starting some athletic
fields, the session felt that this was a time to “put our foot on the gas” and
build as much of the athletic complex as we possibly could. They increased the
allocation to $1.6 million. This project includes a fully-lighted football
field with bleachers and press box, baseball and softball fields with dugouts
and batting cages, a field house with locker rooms, coaches’ offices and weight
training facilities, a concession stand with restrooms and ample parking.
Future plans exist to add a track, tennis courts, swimming pool, a children’s
playground and to light all the fields. This gargantuan project is already
underway and completion is anticipated for use by the beginning of the 2015/16
school year.

Why is the MORE campaign and building strong ministries to children and
families so vital? Because—the secular storm that’s buffeting our culture will blow
every house down, but the ones built on the rock of the word of God. Laying
Christ in in the bottom as the ballast of every young life is our mission and
it will bear fruit for ages to come. So—take the commitment card this weekend
and give yourself away for the one who gave up himself for you!

· This weekend we are also hosting a party—Trunk
or Treat is Sunday afternoon from 3:00 – 5:00. We need 7 more trunks and about
20 more volunteers to really do it right. If you can help, contact Teri Hill (thill@sevenrivers.org).

· Beloved member of SRPC, Tim Ott’s body succumbed to cancer last
night. His memorial service will be Saturday morning at 11am at SRPC.
“Precious in the eyes of the Lord is the death of his saints” (Psalm
116.15).

Sincerely,

Ray

P.S. Call Teri Hill and volunteer to help with Trunk or Treat.
She's pregnant and doesn't need additional stress, so volunteer!!

October 2, 2014

Dear Family,

· SRPC is a family that finds
meaning in the truth, beauty, community, and mission of God. We are builders
and baby boomers, gen-xers and millennials, conservatives and progressives,
educators and athletes, struggling doubters and committed believers, engineers
and artists, introverts and extroverts, healers and addicts, CEO’s and
homemakers, affluent and bankrupt, single and married, happy and hurting,
lonely and connected, stressed-out and carefree, Christian and public
schoolers, PhD’s and people with special needs, experts and students, saints
and sinners. We are a glorious part of God’s modern family.

· One of the highlights of the
week (or month, or past year) was this picture of SRPC/SRCS graduates now in
college, attending the RUF campus ministry retreat together!

· With the fall Pastor’s Class
completed and Financial Peace University successfully concluding—we have a new
Wednesday night adult
education class beginning October 15. Adam Jones will open up the Old
Testament and study the book of Ruth. If you enjoy mystery, hidden meanings,
veiled and revealed wonders, and enjoy being captured by God’s love in the
midst of suffering then you will be riveted by the book of Ruth.

· Trunk or Treat – Kids
of all ages, and their parents, are invited to join us on the Seven Rivers’
athletic field for an afternoon of Trunk or Treating, food, fun and games:
including a hay ride! October 26 from 3:00-5:00 pm.

· Just a reminder, on days
when school is in session, our campus is a one-way campus. Between
the hours of 7:30 am and 4:00 pm, please enter on Maylen Avenue, and exit
at Highway 44.

· Encouraging
report on Phil Gelston’s Church planting in Germany. Phil is a son of SRPC
and one of our missionaries!

· The SRPC staff was sobered by
the news that our own Aimee Kelso has been diagnosed with breast cancer. Aimee
has begun treatment to combat the disease. Would you pray for Aimee and
her sweet family?

· This weekend I’m preaching on
Ephesians 3:1-13. We will be celebrating the Lord’s Supper together and giving
the opportunity for people to be prayed for and anointed for healing during the
service. God’s word invited us, “Is anyone among you suffering? Let him
pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let
him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing
him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one
who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he
will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one
another, that you may be healed. So come to weekend worship with
anticipation, who knows what God will choose to do in our midst.

Sincerely,

Ray

September 18, 2014

Dear SRPC Family,

Here are a few highlights from our Session Meeting last week.

· Approved sending $20,000 to Nature Coast Community Church (a daughter church
of SRPC) to aid in the completion of their new building.

· 2013/2014 income is $33,052 over budgeted income, and year-to-date spending
is $122,740 under our actual income.

· We increased monthly support of four missionaries—Eric & Sara Beth Noll
(Bangladesh), Johnathan & Maggie Iverson (Asia), Eric & Nora Gelston
(Germany) and I-Tec. We added Dr. Trina Wisecup (I-Tec) who is an SRPC member
as a part of our missionary support. We increased our giving to support church
planting in Florida to $70,000 per year. We also added the Parramore church
planting effort of Eric & Kristen Stites to our support roster (see
newsletter).

· SRCS reports an increase in enrollment from 391 in 2013/2014 school year to
454this year. This increase of 63 students included 16 new preschoolers, 27 new
in the grammar school, and 20 added to the upper school (grades 7-12).

· Often in our elder meetings we just sit amazed at God’s continued providence
for the building of His Church! Our Father has been abundantly kind to SRPC!
_____

· For Ross Kuntz – he had a very risky heart surgery last week and remains in
critical condition.

· For a friend whose teenage son is enslaved to drugs (crushing and snorting
his Wellbutrin and huffing compressed air.) Pray for Jesus to rescue him – no
one else can.
_____

· This weekend in worship I’m preaching on Ephesians 2:11-18. It will be sweet
to be together again.

Ray

September 10, 2014

Dear Fam,

Wow – packed house on Sunday! I can’t remember the last time
we had to set up chairs in the back in September! You guys are doing an awesome
job bringing friends and coworkers to SRPC and you are making our church a
place of welcome to hurting, broken people (like us) in our community! So proud
to be one of your pastors.

· SRCS did a mass ice bucket challenge
to raise money for ALS research and our own Ken Wackes! It was beautiful!

· Proud of the 55 families enrolled in the Financial Peace U! Are you aware of
the amount of financial bondage people are struggling under? An anonymous
survey of those in the class revealed these stats:
- Number of families in the class: 55
- Total non-mortgage debt: $1,945,127.55
- Total liquid cash available: $426,206.44
- Open credit card accounts: 200

· Somebody from The Villages donated a souped-up, fancy golf cart to SRPC. It’s
so fast our Facilities Manager took Donna Nelson and Wendy Cash for a spin in
it on Hwy 44. Here’s a fun picture of their jaunt!

· This Cheerios commercial
is a rare TV depiction of Dad’s as competent and valuable.

· Tonight is Pastor’s Class #2. Say a prayer for Jesus to draw people to
himself tonight. We’ve got a group of 50+ -- could be our best class ever! I’ll
see you this weekend in worship – preaching on Ephesians 2:1-10. Won’t it be
good to be together again?